Date: April 13th, 2006
Article by: Joe Anderson (Hardware Reviewer)
Edited by: Nathan Glentworth (Owner / Head Editor)
Product was submitted by: Thermaltake
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PRODUCT COMPOSITION (cont'd)
With the packing materials removed, we get our first good look at the Matrix VX. Plastic sheeting protects the window, both inside and out, during shipping.
A user manual, I/O shield (that almost surely won't fit your mobo), a locking tab and a zip-bag of installation hardware come with the case. The manual is not bad, as far as it goes, but a novice could use a little more clarity.
PRODUCT PICTORIAL AND WALKTHROUGH
The Matrix VX has a host of interesting features that I'll try to get through in a timely manner. The above photo illustrates not only the Thermaltake logo, but also the aluminum mesh that dominates the front panel. Besides giving a distinctive look, this mesh (and some foam filters) provides plenty of cool, clean air to the interior.
Here, you can see the somewhat unconventional bay arrangement. The Matrix VX gives you four big bays bracketed top and bottom, by two 3.5-inch bays.
Thermaltake puts the front ports, well, on the front. Personally, I like this arrangement. It allows access to the ports even if the case is placed on the floor. When placed on a desk, the ports are accessible from either side. From left to right, a firewire, two USB 2, a microphone and headset ports are provided. The internal cabling for these ports have some nice features of their own, as we'll see a little later. We'll discuss the finish in more detail later in this review, but you can see that the color match between the plastic front panel and the rest of the case is quite good.
The chrome power and reset buttons have an attractive machined look and the “Matrix” badge is chrome as well, with a matte surround that is very attractive, but difficult to photograph. The power and HDD activity lights live just below the buttons, behind the mesh. I'll show them powered up a little later.
The case feet are pre-installed and made of a black, rubber-like material. A brisk pull on the slot is all it takes to remove the plastic front panel.
The back of the panel shows the filtered bay covers and the thoughtful wiring harness Thermaltake has provided to make installation a bit easier for the end user.
